News

Changes to Hexham hospital parking from Monday 20 June

Car parking charges for patients and visitors at Hexham General Hospital are to be brought into line with the rest of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.

From Monday 20 June, parking for one hour will cost £1.20 and £4 for a 24-hour period.

There will be no change for blue disabled badge holders who are exempt from charges or to the concessionary parking which is available to long-term patients and their visitors by speaking to hospital staff.

The changes at Hexham hospital mean the cost of parking at all three of the trust’s general hospitals will now be the same.

The move from healthcare headers aims to ensure that parking on site at Hexham hospital is kept available for hospital patients and people visiting loved ones, rather than people who may just be visiting the town.

Steven Bannister, director of estates and facilities at Northumbria Healthcare, said: “We want to ensure that, as far as possible, anyone coming to the hospital to attend the urgent care centre, the maternity unit or for a planned appointment, and those visiting loved ones in hospital, are able park on site as we know how important this is.

“We would also like to remind people who only need to park on site at Hexham for less than 20 minutes to pick-up or drop-off someone, for example, that they can do this without having to pay.”

Car parking charges at Northumbria Healthcare remain among the lowest in the NHS and are used to cover the cost of maintaining hospital car parks. Any surplus funds are reinvested directly into patient care and developing local services.

The changes at Hexham from 20 June mean that patients and visitors will no longer receive a free regular hot drink, a pilot scheme introduced in December 2014.

The new daily charge of £4 applies for 24 hours from the time of payment so someone visiting a loved one in the evening will also be covered should they need to return at a similar time the next day.

Patients of the two GP practices on the Hexham hospital site can continue to park free of charge for their appointments by making use of the free 40-minute parking in place for GP practice patients.

People in the Hexham area are being reminded that help is at hand should they need to travel further afield to visit loved ones in hospital.

Northumbria Healthcare runs a free daily car service for people without transport of their own to visit relatives who are receiving treatment in the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital at Cramlington or Wansbeck or North Tyneside general hospitals.

The service leaves Hexham hospital at 1pm every day and returns between 4.30pm and 5pm following visiting. Places must be booked in advance by contacting switchboard on 0344 811 8111, extension 5388.